By the end of this year we should have a single car garage on the back lot of our house. That means I’ll have somewhere to keep a table saw. But the garage has to function as a garage, which means that I am limited to a jobsite saw on a folding base – there is simply no space available for anything larger.

I’ve been studying what’s available and there seem to be three candidates

- Bosch 4100

- Ridgid R4513

- DeWalt DWE7491RS

From reading reviews and getting my hands on display examples in the big box stores I’m tending towards the De Walt, in part because I like the fence. But I would be really grateful for as wide a range of opinion as possible.

I’m not, at the moment, considering SawStop or the recently announced Bosch with flesh sensing technology. If prices begin to fall I might. Until then I will have to rely on healthy respect and common sense (i.e. ‘plenty fear, no beer’) to keep me safe.

I have a Rigid, the saw works great, do not like the fence, but it works. It will get the saw replaced when I get a garage. I bought this at a show, it was refurbished and a really good price. It has served me well.

I would not get a direct drive anything – been there, done that, not in the future – would use a dull handsaw first. The bigger the motor the more you can cut. It really pisses you off to get half way through a piece of oak and the motor trips off – know this from experience, it is also dangerous.

If they have demo equipment, go buy a piece of 4×4 and ask to cut it on the saw as a test. If it bogs down, don’t buy it. If, when changing the fence, there is any slop from side to side, it is easy to misalign the fence and cause a binding situation – very dangerous.

The Dewalt DWE 7491 is probably the most popular saw at the moment. Great build quality, good price and excellent value for money. It comes with a foldable stand. On this table saw reviews page there is a comparison chart where you can compare all the features and specs of different table saws. Quite handy! Hope this helps and hope you find the perfect saw for your shop.

By the end of this year we should have a single car garage on the back lot of our house. That means I ll have somewhere to keep a table saw. But the garage has to function as a garage, which means that I am limited to a jobsite saw on a folding base – there is simply no space available for anything larger.

I ve been studying what s available and there seem to be three candidates

- Bosch 4100

- Ridgid R4513

- DeWalt DWE7491RS

From reading reviews and getting my hands on display examples in the big box stores I m tending towards the De Walt, in part because I like the fence. But I would be really grateful for as wide a range of opinion as possible.

I m not, at the moment, considering SawStop or the recently announced Bosch with flesh sensing technology. If prices begin to fall I might. Until then I will have to rely on healthy respect and common sense (i.e. plenty fear, no beer ) to keep me safe.